Daily Times

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday decided to telecast live the proceedings of Parliament’s standing committees, an essential and vital part of the Parliament.

The prime minister, in this respect, has written a formal letter to National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. He said since the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, in the past, had taken a revolutionary step of launching PTV Parliament, second phase of that process, which had been halted by the previous government during the last four years, should be initiated at the earliest.

The prime minister, in his letter to the NA speaker, said an appropriate procedure and parameters for live telecast of the meetings of standing committees should be finalized. He further said former NA speaker Ayaz Sadiq in coordination with Mohtarma Marriyum Aurangzeb had started the process of telecasting the Parliament’s proceedings for general public in a very appreciable manner. That step was much appreciated and welcomed by masses, journalists and people from other segments of life, the prime minister added.

He said Raja Pervaiz Ashraf being a political worker and an important leader of the party, which had achieved the distinction of making Constitution, was well aware of the importance of the Constitution and the Parliament. The prime minister said he had directed Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohtarma Marriyum Aurangzeb to speed up the process of the live telecast under the guidance of NA speaker. “I hope that this joint effort will bring further respect to the Parliament,” he said, adding the masses, especially the youth, would get awareness about teh Constitution, their rights, the importance of Parliament and its performance in the democratic system. The prime minister directed the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to ensure implementation of the second phase of the project in coordination with the NA speaker on urgent basis. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday directed the authorities concerned to accelerate rescue and relief efforts in the areas affected by heavy rains and floods in different parts of the country, particularly Balochistan.

The prime minister expressed grief over the loss of life and property caused by the rains and consequent floods. He asked the chief ministers of the provinces to prioritize the provision of assistance to the rain and flood affected people, besides personally supervising the operation.

He also directed the National Disaster Management Authority and provincial disaster management authorities to speed up the emergency measures in coordination with the provincial governments and relevant departments. He also instructed the relevant departments to accelerate relief and rescue operation in Quetta, Qila Saifullah, Zhob, Pishin, Harnai, Khushnub, Qamaruddin, Muslim Bagh and other affected areas. He also directed for providing immediate relief to the people who had lost their houses due to the heavy rains. The prime minister also called for a better coordination to carry out relief and rescue operation in Sindh, particularly Karachi, and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, besides providing the best medical facilities to the injured and the relocation of the affected people to safe areas.

He asked the authorities concerned to carry out a survey of the affected areas so that a mechanism could be developed for compensation to the affected people. The prime minister also asked the ministers and parliamentarians to ensure coordination in the rescue and relief efforts in the affected areas. Shehbaz Sharif assured the Government of Balochistan of federal government’s all possible support to help overcome the losses caused by the heavy rains in the province. The prime minister, in a meeting with Chief Minister of Balochistan Abdul Quddus Bizenjo, said the development of Balochistan was among his government’s priorities. During the meeting, they discussed the overall political situation particularly the matters pertaining to Balochistan. Separately, the newly appointed Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan Mehmet Pacaci met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif here Thursday and discussed the bilateral relations and other matters of mutual interests. The prime minister felicitated the ambassador on his appointment and extended best wishes to him for a successful term in Pakistan. He stated that Pakistan-Turkiye fraternal ties were unparalleled in inter-state relations in terms of mutual trust, understanding and mutual support on each other’s national causes. He expressed the hope that during the ambassador’s tenure, the bilateral cooperation would be further strengthened, especially in the trade and investment domains. The prime minister expressed gratitude for Turkiye’s steadfast support on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute and reiterated Pakistan’s commitment on Turkiye’s core interests. Recalling his visit to Turkiye in June 2022, the prime minister conveyed that he was looking forward to welcoming Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the 7th session of High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) in Pakistan in September this year.

He also highlighted the significance of 75th anniversary of Pakistan-Turkiye diplomatic relations and underscored the importance of celebrating the milestone in a befitting manner through commemorative events in both the countries.